


Rebellion

by MonocerosRex



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, First Kiss, Fluff (at the end), Gen, Getting Together, Guerilla Warfare, Lance is a dork, M/M, Memes, Moderate Violence, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-26
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-08-27 02:55:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8384497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MonocerosRex/pseuds/MonocerosRex
Summary: When they discover an essential Galran supply line Lance and the team attempt to cripple the Empire by freeing a series of key planets. They face many unique challenges along the way, but can they succeed when the Galra catch on to their plan?





	1. Phlebotinum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the space adventure none of you asked for!
> 
> Conceptually this started off as a romance, evolved into an interplanetary wank about how great my space hijo is, and eventually pooped out of my brain is this strange attempt at... an action fic? I have no idea :P
> 
> Nevertheless, here it is in all its dubious glory! I hope there is some enjoyment to be had for you all. 
> 
> Hasta la later!

The pressure on his chest was excruciating, begging him to take a lungful of the toxic atmosphere. Lance whipped his arm up to block another swing from the Galra’s knife, but--shit!--it was a feint. The guard twisted away and hit Lance across the back, causing what little air he had left to explode out of his lungs.  
Eyes watering, Lance dodged a slash across the side of his neck, launching himself at his helmet. His hands brushed the smooth metal, but before he could tug it on his head was being dragged up by the hair, his throat exposed. Writhing like an animal Lance tried to get free, but even as his vision blurred he saw the knife flash. Lance swung his helmet up in desperation, smashing it into the face of the alien behind him.  
For one crucial moment the Galra’s fingers loosened, and Lance slammed his helmet on. Without a care for his stinging ears, the Paladin choked on a huge gasp of air. The oxygen flooding his brain made him dizzy for a moment, but there was no time to spare.  
The guard raised his arm, aiming to stab Lance between the neck and shoulder where his armour was weakest. Rolling away Lance sprung to his feet and hammered a kick to the Galra’s knee, feeling a sickening crunch before the other man fell.  
Wasting no time Lance smashed his forehead into the Galra’s face and, scrabbling for his bayard, shot him dead.  
Panting as he stood over the corpse Lance tried to hear Shiro’s voice as everyone shouted through the comms.  
“Lance, are you okay? What’s happening?”  
“I’m fine,” Lance wheezed, “There was a Galra here. Also, we need a way to secure the helmets to our armour or something.”  
“What?” Shiro sounded concerned.  
“He kicked me in the head and my helmet came off. I had to fight holding my breath like a badass.” Lance was too tired and shaken to smile along with his boast, but his companions didn’t need to know that.  
“You’re certain you didn’t inhale any of the air?” Demanded Allura.  
“Yeah, no sweat Princess. I can hold my breath for like 5 minutes. Impressed?”  
“Alteans can all hold their breath for around half an hour.”  
Lance felt a small smile tug at his lips as everyone on the comms laughed, somehow finding the energy to groan in mock embarrassment.  
“Ok guys, I’m almost done in here.” Pidge interjected, instructing everyone to get to their lions.  
Aching all over Lance stumbled towards Blue. Just as he was climbing into the cockpit, Lance heard Keith’s voice in his ear.  
“Ah, guys, do you see that?”  
Swinging Blue around Lance gasped, laying eyes on no less than _three_ fleets of Galran airships racing towards them.  
“Everyone, into formation!” Cried Shiro.  
As the five lions swooped together the Galra finally came into range. Everyone immediately began taking out fighters, but the smaller ships scattered, spreading out and dodging behind them. Lance swore as they closed in, never managing to ice more than two at a time. Swarming around them fighters began firing in unison, dancing and twirling through the air, not giving the larger ships a chance to regroup. Lance couldn’t help but be reminded of killer bees. Swinging Blue’s head around he arced a beam of ice through the fray, freezing several ships.  
But it wasn’t nearly enough.  
“There are too many!” Cried Hunk. “Even my armour can’t take this much constant fire!”  
As if she could hear him--she probably could--Blue started flashing warning across his screen in time with the emergency sirens echoing through the cabin. Lance bit his lip, listening to the psychic screaming of his robot companion. _It’s okay girl, we’ll make it out. I owe you a wash, remember?_  
“Just fly!” Said Keith. “Stop shooting and muscle through them!”  
Unwilling to admit this was good advice aloud Lance blasted full throttle forward and up. He winced as several machines slammed into the nose, making the whole lion shudder and groan. With a deafening screech one of the ships tore a gash in Blue’s side, but Lance just kept pushing, chasing after the streak of red he could see through the cloud of fighter ships. Praying the hull hadn’t been breached he burst through the atmosphere, screaming through space towards the Castle. The ships were on their tail and Lance was still taking heavy fire, but Blue seemed to sense how close they were to home and put on a fresh burst of speed, rocketing into the bay as the screeching alarms reached a peak.  
Tumbling out of his lion Lance whipped around, heaving a sigh of relief when he saw everyone follow him in.  
“Is everyone okay?”  
Lance grinned tiredly at the chorus of ‘I’m good’s before shuffling towards the control room with his comrades.

# ***

“Pidge, this is incredible!” Exclaimed Allura. “You’ve found a list of all the phlebotinum factories in the Galran Empire!”  
“Whoa, whoa, wait. Phlu-what-inum?” Asked Hunk.  
“Phlebotinum is a raaaaaaaare mineral that is instrumental in the process of refining quintessence! Without it the Galra wouldn’t be able to utilise any of the resources they harvest. It also tastes like licking a wimbacca’s floom gland!” Coran declared with his usual exuberance.  
“So, if some handsome young Voltron paladin were to… _mess_ with those factories…” Lance drawled.  
“The Empire would have to stop taking new planets.” Replied Allura. “They wouldn’t be able to make more of those monsters, and their druids would lose their power. Zarkon would begin to age. The fuel their whole society is based on would become useless.”  
“That’s great! What are we waiting for, we need to plan an attack!” Cried Keith.  
“An attack? Sounds pretty full on dude. Maybe more like sabotage? Quiet, sneaky sabotage…” Said Hunk.  
“Oh, shit yeah!! Let’s get full _Art of War_ on their asses.”  
“What? We’re the _Voltron Alliance_ , we don’t sneak around like cowards! Hunk is just scared!” Keith argued. Lance thought he was probably just cranky because he needed a nap.  
“Hey, don’t you disrespect my man like that!” Lance declared, pausing for effect. “Sun Tzu was _so_ not a coward.”  
“Ouch.” Said Hunk, shaking his head.  
“Chill, dude.” Said Pidge. “The only thing I can plan for right now is a nap.”  
“Pidge is right, we can get technical tomorrow.” Shiro commanded. “If no one is injured we should all get to bed.” It wasn’t a request.  
“Yes, dad!” The paladins chorused before shuffling out of the room. 

# ***

Lance dragged his feet, reaching the bedrooms as the last of the tired paladins shut their door. Walking past his own he made his way to the infirmary, which lit up obligingly at his entrance. Sitting up on one of the tables he began to peel himself out of his armour and bodysuit, wincing as the fabric moved against his wounds. His ribs were heavily bruised where he’d taken a kick, but his breathing was unencumbered and nothing felt broken when he pressed down. They was a nasty gash on his forearm where he’d blocked the guard’s knife and it had been throbbing since the adrenaline wore off in the control room. Other than these injuries there were several small cuts and bruises, and Lance imagined his muscles would be very sore tomorrow, but that was to be expected.  
Digging out the Altean medical kit Lance proceeded to smear an evil-smelling green goo on his ribs. Lance made a face, but the way it healed bruises overnight more than made up for how it stained the sheets.  
Next he dug out a small device that resembled a torch and shone the purple light onto his cut, sterilising it. It was still bleeding sluggishly, so he was in the process of clumsily bandaging it with his left hand when he heard the door.  
“Lance?” Keith hesitated in the doorway, frowning. “Why are _you_ up?”  
“Just grabbing some of this crazy bruise goo. Hey, do you think it’s made of the same stuff as the food goo? The colour is like, exactly the same. Although this stuff smells like if a zombie puked eggs into the garbage.”  
Keith stared at him for a second, clearly debating whether or not to just leave. “No.”  
“No what?” Lance smiled at Keith innocently.  
“No.” Keith’s face lost the sour look as he came further into the room. “Are you okay? Your ribs look--wow, they look pretty messed up.”  
“They’re just bruised, nothing a little zombie goop can’t fix.” Lance grinned some more, hastily trying to finish bandaging so he could leave. “Why are you up, nerdlord?”  
“I heard you when I went to get a drink. Why didn’t you say you were injured?” Keith asked, sounding a little miffed.  
“I… didn’t notice how bad it was till I got back to my room.” Lance lied, somehow accidentally unraveling half the bandaging.  
“I don’t think--tch, here.” Said Keith, taking the roll of cloth from Lance and starting fresh. As the sticky alien cloth fell away Keith sucked in a breath in through his teeth. “Lance, that looks really bad. If this were Earth you’d need so many stitches… There’s no way you didn’t notice this.”  
“I, uh…” Lance winced, hoping Keith would think his lack of bravado was from the pain in his arm. “I didn’t want to worry--I can take care of it myself. You know.”  
Keith was silent as he dressed the wound, fingers astonishingly gentle against Lance’s skin. Lance found his eyes drawn to the long digits working expertly, so pale compared with his own. Keith’s breathing was slow and steady as it ghosted over Lance’s bare chest, his head bent over his work. From this angle Lance could practically count Keith’s eyelashes.  
Keith huffed a sigh as he finished up, patting Lance’s elbow awkwardly and turning away. “That’s dumb.” He said belatedly. “Just tell someone next time, idiot.” Keith walked out without turning back around, but Lance found himself inexplicably warmed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Joss Whedon for the tongue-in-cheek name of my unobtainium-type substance :) 
> 
> Let me know what you think? I know it has some flaws, but did it tickle your fancy at all? 
> 
> I've got a few more chapters of this written already, but I'd like to keep a buffer so I can work on the new ones without exploding in a ball of anxiety (I might be a weeeeeny bit sensitive to pressure. It's not like it's the entire reason I can't finish my English degree or anything :P). 
> 
> See you spacers later!


	2. Zardoz

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The name of the planet is a reference to the [best movie ever](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kbGVIdA3dx0%0A), check it out. 
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you spacers enjoy!

“We need to come up with a better phrase than ‘cockpit’ for Pidge. It’s just not accurate.”  
“What? That’s not-- _Lance!_ ” Keith sounded equal parts offended and exasperated, his standard response to Lance’s nonsense.  
“Gross.” Hunk said around a mouthful of goo.  
“You think that’s gross? Be thankful he didn’t suggest ‘clampit’ as an alternative.” Pidge snarked, somehow fielding Lance’s high five without looking away from the Green lion’s dash.  
All four of them were crammed into Green’s cabin as they made their way toward Zardoz. According to Allura it was a desert planet populated by a race of gentle giants. It was also the location of the closest phlebotinum factory. Apparently, very specific atmospheric conditions were required to manufacture the rare substance, which could only be found on a handful of planets in the known universe. It was all way too _sciencey_ for Lance, but it seemed that if they could free all known planets meeting these conditions, the Galra would be permanently crippled.  
It was important the mission stayed covert, but so far only Pidge’s lion was equipped with Stealth Mode.  
“Remind me why Shiro doesn’t have to be squished in here with us?” Lance asked, sneezing some of Keith’s hair out of his mouth.  
“The planet’s surface is constantly covered in sandstorms, only it isn’t really sand. More like a kind of metallic ore? Anyway, something about it interferes with communications. The Galra use a satellite to contact the Empire, so Shiro is going to destroy it, cutting them off.” Hunk explained.  
“That’s--” Lance was cut off by a loud beeping as Green started to shudder.  
“The wind speeds are really high!” Gritted Pidge, wrestling with the controls. “I can’t see anything through this sand!”  
“Can you land her?”  
“Yes, but--”  
“Even if she can, there’s no way we can survive in that! We’ll be trapped in here!” Cried Keith.  
“Dude, our suits can withstand _space lasers._ ”  
“No, Keith is right,” said Hunk. “Our suits would disintegrate after maybe a minute.”  
“So we just have to be fast.”  
“ _Real fast_.” Said Pidge. “I can land us close the bay, but someone will still have to open the doors. It would be more than four hundred metres from Green to the switch.”  
“Can you run that far in under a minute?” Hunk asked Keith.  
“I’m not sure--”  
“I can.” Said Lance. Everyone turned to look at him in surprise. “I could sprint the four hundred metre in 49 seconds when I was fifteen, and since then I’ve lived at a military school and trained with the OG slavedriver Princess Allura.” Lance looked around at the other’s hesitant expressions. “Geez, careful, your overwhelming confidence in me may go to my head.”  
“It’s not that, Lance, it’s just…” Hunk began.  
“You’re about as athletic as a sponge.” Finished Pidge.  
“I don’t think I could do it in those winds and, no offense, but you don’t train nearly as much as me. Surely there’s another way?”  
Some offence was taken, but that was mostly just because it was Keith.  
“Is there something we can use to shield ourselves maybe?” Asked Hunk.  
“Anything big would get ripped out of our hands by the wind.” Said Lance. “Our forearm shields are useless when the wind changes this much. Pidge’s plan is still the best.”  
“... are you sure?” Asked Hunk. “I don’t want my precious baby getting hurt.”  
“Eh, what’s the worst that could happen?”  
“The flesh and skin getting flayed from your bones by an unending fury of wind and sand?” Offered Pidge.  
“Yeah, see? No big deal.” Lance was already putting on his helmet as the Green lion settled into position.  
“I don’t know if this is a good idea--” Started Keith before being slapped none to gently on the back by Lance.  
“Chill, dude. No need to be jealous. I’m sure there’s _something_ you’re better at than me.”  
“There’re a lot of somethings!” Keith called out after him as Lance dropped out of Green’s mouth.  
He hit the ground running, the wind buffeting his body this way and that. The sound was intense: the howling wind joining the beating of sand against his helmet. He was almost completely blind, but could just make out the door in front of him. His legs burned as he pushed himself further, but he wasn’t even halfway yet. _Please don’t let me twist anything,_ he thought, feeling a sting against his waist as his bodysuit began to wear away. Cursing Hunk’s inability to perfectly estimate the resistance time of alien cloth vs alien sand Lance pushed himself even harder, lungs burning. The sting quickly became an excruciating burn and he felt wetness seep under his armour, but he was almost there, almost--there! Lance slammed into the wall with his shoulder, hand already out to press the button that would activate the doors. They slid open with a _whoosh_ and Lance collapsed inside, gasping and wincing as his stomach burned.  
He turned at the clanking of Green walking inside, though he could barely hear it over the sound of the storm.  
“Could you guys grab me a space bandaid on your way out?” Lance panted into his helmet as the others began to jump out of Green’s mouth.  
“Nice work,” said Keith, walking over and tossing him a flat square package.  
“I thought for sure you’d die.” Said Pidge, eyeing the wreckage of his suit. The alien Spandex was ragged and most of the paint had been blasted off the plates. Even the visor was pitted and scratched, making his vision a little foggy.  
“My poor baby! Your suit is full of holes!” Hunk wailed  
“These aren’t holes, they’re windows to paradise,” Lance winked at Hunk, peeling the back off the dressing. “You get a front row seat to my gun show!”  
“Right now your ‘guns’ look like mince meat,” Remarked Keith dryly, although Lance thought he could see relief around his eyes. “And are those pink boxers you’re wearing?”  
“Damn right. Pink’s my favourite colour after blue.” Lance chuckled to cover his pain as he slapped the film over his sandburn. “Ready to go? What’s the plan?”  
“Pidge and I are going to go sabotage the main reactor, while you two free the workers. You’ll have to be quiet, if they hear you coming you can guarantee they’ll use the natives as hostages.” Hunk explained, pulling on his helmet.  
“Sneak in, liberate the masses. Got it.”  
“Good luck you guys.” Keith nodded to the others before jogging off towards the small door set in the side of the hangar.  
“Maybe you should try puking into the main gear box, see if that breaks it.” Lance shot Hunk some finger guns before chasing after Keith.

# ***

“Can you see anything?” Lance whispered, crouched behind Keith as he peered around the corner.  
“There aren’t many guards; I think we’ve taken most of them out by now. But there’s a bunch of slaves being held at gunpoint.”  
“What should we do? Should I try to pick some of them off from here?”  
“No, the announcement clearly said they kill a slave for every Galra we kill, unless we turn ourselves in.”  
“Any ideas, then?”  
“Maybe. We could try pretending to surrender, and then making a big distraction so the prisoners can escape?”  
“What’s to stop them just shooting Zardozi until we stop?”  
“Nothing, I guess. We’d just have to be quick. There are only six guards, plus the Commander. Do you have a better plan?”  
Lance grimaced. He’d rather get captured a hundred time over than risk an innocent dying, but their mission had a time limit and forming Voltron and defeating the Empire was objectively more important than a few prisoner’s lives. Try as he might he couldn’t think of an alternative.  
“No, I don’t.” Lance sighed. “I do have a suggestion though…”

# ***

“Wait, don’t shoot!” Lance cried, stepping into the light. “Please! I surrender, just please, help my friend…” Pretending to stumble under the weight of Keith draped across his shoulders Lance entered the room. Towards the back three guards trained their guns on a group of wiry, orange humanoids, who were almost the same height on their knees. Three more guards stood by the entrance, blaster now trained on Lance. A seventh figure stood off the one side, paler than the others with broad, muscled shoulders and two bulbous cybernetic eyes, glowing with a sinister purple light. The Commander, Lance surmised.  
“Welcome, Paladin.” The woman leered, tucking her hands behind her back. “What can I help you with?”  
Lance didn’t have to fake a shudder at her creepy demeanor. “M-my friend is injured. I know you need us alive for information or whatever. Save him and I’ll--” Lance’s voice cracked on the last word and he mentally patted himself on the back for his brilliant performance. Knees trembling Lance slumped to the floor, putting Keith down as gently as he could.  
The tall woman licked her lips with a long forked tongue. “Weak. So _deliciously_ weak, these paladins. Very well, hand over your weapon.”  
At the Commander’s nod, one of the guards came over to Lance, roughly pulling him up by one arm. Lance felt naked as he relinquished his bayard, but one look at the shaking shoulders of the prisoners bolstered his determination. He was herded over to them by the guard, and Lance knelt in their midst obediently, feeling like a child surrounded by the towering Zardozi.  
As the guard was turning away Lance caught something out of the corner of his eye. One of the Zardozi was was waving at him discreetly, hand hidden from the Galra by their large body. Catching his eye the large alien flicked their eyes at the Guard moving away and, using their fingers, mimed tripping him over. Feeling his eyes widen in shock Lance nodded almost imperceptibly.  
Watching the Galra soldier move closer and closer to the other alien Lance felt his nerves stretch taut as a piano wire. A fraction of a second later the guard was within the Zardozi’s range and, with a subtle shift of their long, long legs, the alien tripped the soldier right into the group of prisoners.  
Than man fell with a shout, finding himself tangled in long orange limbs that just so happened to be in all the wrong places at once. The other guards reacted immediately, turning to see what the commotion was.  
In this moment of distraction Keith sprang into action. Hammering a kick into the guard standing over him he activated his bayard, slicing the man’s head off in one swing. In the same motion Keith twisted towards the next guard, running her through and grabbing Lance’s bayard.  
All of this had taken place over the course of about 3 second, but now the Galra were beginning to react.  
Keith desperately threw Lance’s bayard, the move costing him a few seconds. Lance caught and activated it, but Keith had already taken a hit from the remaining soldier on his side of the room.  
Trusting Keith could look after himself Lance began feverishly picking off guards, rolling away from the prisoners and praying the guards wouldn’t have time to injure any. “Run!” He shouted at the Zardozi, killing a second Galra and dodging blaster fire from all sides. The towering Zardozi scattered, giving Lance time to line up a shot at the final guard. But before he can pull the trigger his wrist explodes in pain as a purple laser slams into his arm. Spinning around his sees the Commander grappling Keith, holding his arms down and firing at Lance--with her eyes?  
Dodging another shot Lance aims at the Galran woman but she jerks Keith around, using him as a shield. They’re about the same height, unfortunately, and in the chaos of the battle Lance can’t get a clear shot to her head. Glancing over his shoulder at the remaining guard Lance saw the Zardozi who had helped him before snap the man’s neck like it was nothing. Hadn’t Allura said they were _gentle_ giants?  
Whipping back around Lance raised his bayard again, but still there was nowhere for him to shoot. Keith struggled against the woman’s hold but his sword was useless in this position, all wrapped up in a parody of a lover’s embrace.  
As if in slow motion, Lance saw the Galra’s robot gaze slide down, lowering towards his friend’s head. Everything stilled around him as he saw those purple eyes glow brighter, and still there was nothing he could do--except there was.  
There, at the last second, Lance saw it. A gap in the Galra’s defences, a tiny slip that meant, if he was incredibly lucky, they could just maybe live through this after all.  
Finger bearing down on the trigger Lance sent a desperate plea to whoever was up there that he made this shot. A fraction of a millimetre either way and it would be Keith he blew a hole in.  
The trigger went _click_ , Lance’s breath caught, and the Galra fell.  
The second the woman’s grasp slackened Keith wrenched himself forward, spinning around in a battle stance before relaxing slightly at the sight of the Galra’s prone form.  
“That… was too close for comfort.” Say Keith, swallowing thickly.  
“Yeah…” Lance agreed. “How’d Cyclops manage to grab you?”  
“I was deflecting her fire with my sword, but then this bright light blinded me for a moment… Wait, Cyclops? That means one eye, Lance.”  
“I know what it means! I was referencing X-Men. Y’know, Scott Summers, laser eyes…” Lance sighed at Keith’s blank look. “I can’t believe you.”  
“What? I’m too busy doing _important_ stuff for tv!”  
“What about comics?”  
Lance hid a smile as Keith got more and more exasperated, schooling Lance taking precedence over the wound in his back and processing his near-death experience.  
“Um, excuse me?” Said a deep voice from behind them. Lance started and spun, finding himself faced with the Zardozi alien who had helped him before. They were standing with their shoulders hunched, shuffling their feet a little. They would have looked almost timid if they weren’t more than seven feet tall.  
“Oh! Thank you for your help earlier! My name’s Lance, and this is Keith. What’s up?”  
“My name is Arz. Thank you for saving my people.”  
“You’re super welcome, dude. Was anyone hurt just now?”  
“No serious injuries were sustained.”  
Lance frowned. “So some _minor_ injuries were?” That alien nodded. “Quiznak. I’m really sorry Arz. I knew that move was risky, but we were out of options. If we hadn’t been discovered none of your people would be hurt.”  
“We did everything we could, Lance.” Keith laid a hand on his back. “Stealth missions alway carry risk.”  
Arz, who had been following this conversation closely, piped up. “Perhaps my people could help?”

# ***

“This is incredible!” Cried hunk, holding up a piece of silver cloth. “How does it work?”  
“I don’t know how to describe that to you,” said Arz, “but it is essentially the perfect mask. If you wish you can set parameters such as race, gender, weight, and you will look different to everyone who sees you, even after meeting you twice. Perhaps next time you infiltrate a base, you could go in dressed as Galra?”  
“That _does_ sound useful.” Pidge said, adjusting her glasses as she peers at the suit more closely. “Does it use light refraction, or…”  
As she and Arz got into a discussion of the nanostructure of the cloth Lance eyed Keith worriedly. He had taken a nasty gash in that fight, and although he had assured everyone he would be fine until he got to the ship he was beginning to wilt.  
“Ugh, I’m so space hungry!” Lance groaned, half collapsing into Hunk. “I need some space food. Space _now_.”  
“Alright, alright,” said Hunk, patting Lance on the back like the child he was being. “Pidge, I think maybe it’s time to go.”  
“What? But--”  
“No buts, you and Arz can catch up another time. You good to go, Keith?”  
“Hmm? Yeah.” Keith said, perking up a little. Lance smiled to himself, snuggling deeper into Hunk’s shoulder before straightening.  
“It was nice to meet you, Arz.” Lance said with a grin, sticking his hand out. Arz merely stared at it for a moment before bowing.  
“It was an honour to meet the new Paladins of Voltron. I’m sure we will meet in the future. I wish you every success in your mission against the Galra. Farewell.”  
“Farewell!” The four nerds parroted, before limping their way back to the Green lion.  
It was a quiet ride back, as everyone was very tired, but there was an unspoken satisfaction in the air that lingered even as they landed and made their way to the control room.  
“Congratulations Paladins!” Said the Princess, looking disgustingly fresh-faced in Lance’s opinion. He knew he was sand-blown and bloody, and the rest of the crew were only slightly better off than him. “There hasn’t been any chatter about a disabled factory that we’ve caught, it seems like your covert mission went off without a hitch!”  
“That’s right. We’re all very proud of you.” Said Shiro, who had gotten in some time before the younger paladins.  
“Thanks, Dad.” Said Lance, “We’re proud of you too.”  
“We are,” said Hunk as Keith snickered.  
“Is anyone injured? Lance looks a little worse for wear…”  
“What _did_ happen to your armour, Lance?” Asked Coran. “It’s made from Altean moth leather, it should be nearly indestructible!”  
“Oh, no.” Muttered Pidge. The rest of the team groaned as Lance perked up, eyes shining.  
“ _Well_ ,” he began, “There we were, _trapped_ in the middle of a steel sandstorm--”  
“--technically it was more of a metallic ore--”  
“-- _steel_ _sandstorm_ , hope all but lost, when Pidge comes up with a _crazy_ , _insane_ , last-ditch plan. One of us would run out into the shit-show--”  
“Language.” Commented Shiro.  
“-- _space_ shit-show outside, across a mile--  
“Four hundred metres.” Keith corrected dryly.  
“--of open desert and open the hangar doors. The only problem? Pidge was too tiny and--ow!--precious, Hunk had just had a meal and couldn’t exercise for another 45 minutes, and Keith’s mullet had too much wind resistance! So, who would have the balls, the looks, the _athleticism_ to help? Who would step up and _save_ the _day_? It was I! _Lance!_ I bravely sprinted the whole way, as fast the very winds of Zardoz themselves, reaching the hanger with mere moments to spare--”  
“Okay, time for bed.” Shiro cut him off, everyone laughing at the lost momentum. “Not you, Keith, I’ll look at your back in the infirmary first.”  
“Yes, D--”  
“Yeah, yeah, ‘yes, dad’, I know. Come on, let’s go everyone.”  
Everyone murmured their ‘goodnight’s, still chuckling at Lance’s expense, a feeling of warmth filling the castle that reminded him of home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Seeing people's interest warms my heart and makes me so happy during this rough time!!!!


	3. Blood Ocean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Several missions later on an ocean planet the team's luck finally runs out. Can Lance protect those closest to him in the face of such adversity?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry this is late updating, I finally got posted my phone. My laptop will take a little longer, but I'll write the next chap when I can. 
> 
> Special thanks to [ironinkpen]() for the memes in this chapter, her headcanons are some of my faves.

  
The next few weeks were a whirlwind of missions. Some were quiet; Lance recalled sneaking through a silent snowscape, surrounded by the towering wreckage of an ancient war, quietly picking off guard after guard while Pidge systematically broke their stuff. Others were less so. Lance still had nightmares about battling a gundam (“It was a mechanised battle suit Lance, it wasn’t a _gundam_ , it was--”) that waded through a lake of magma as he and Pidge used their jets to hop around on bits of floating crust. There was jungle planet with purple foliage and a race of gnome-like aliens who offered them many strange herbal potions. Lance had cried himself to sleep that night, missing the rainforests of Earth.  
Today’s mission involved a planet that was completely covered in ocean. Apparently the facility they were attacking floated like it’s own little island. Lance was secretly looking forward to seeing what the alien ocean smelled like.  
Lance was grabbing a space Capri Sun to drink during Allura’s briefing when he spotted Keith walking by the door.  
“Wait up!” He called, falling into step with the other paladin. “You looking forward to this mission, Mullet?”  
“Uh, yeah.” Keith said. “Sure.”  
Lance frowned. Normally Keith would roll his eyes and say “Take this _seriously_ , Lance.” Upon closer inspection the other boy looked a little off. His shoulders were tense, and there was a certain tightness around his eyes. “Are you cool, my man?”  
“What? Yeah.” Said Keith a little defensively. “What do you mean?”  
“I know we don’t get along super well, Keith,” Lance began, ignoring the other boy’s snort. “But you and Shiro get along like a house on fire. So if something’s up, you should talk to him about it. I know you’re a bad boy or whatever, but don’t brood, okay?”  
Keith looked at Lance in surprise for a moment before glancing away with an uncharacteristically soft smile tugging at one corner of his mouth. “If you say so. Weirdo.”  
“I do say so. If you don’t I’ll call you ‘scarless Zuko’ for the rest of eternity.” This reference clearly went over Keith’s head, but Pidge and Hunk must have caught the tail end of their conversation because they both snorted in amusement.  
“Are you excited for the mission, Lance?”  
“Dude, Allura said the ocean was non-toxic, I’m gonna ride some alien waves. ” Lance gushed.  
“I’m… gonna go to the bathroom before Allura gets here.” Keith murmured, slipping away. Lance pretended not to notice, privately hoping he was gonna talk to Shiro.  
“Where’s Keith going? I need you all here for the briefing.” Said Allura, coming into the room behind them.  
“He’ll be back. Shiro’s not here yet either.”  
“Yes, but unlike you, Dad already knows the plan. Oh, they’re back.”  
“I’m never escaping the ‘Dad’ thing, am I?” Asked Shiro with feigned exasperation, Keith trailing in behind him. “I’m only twenty five, you know.”  
“You’ve written me into your will, right?” Asked Pidge without looking up from her handheld.  
“Okay, settle down. Now, all our missions thus far have been clandestine in nature, and today’s is no exception. All the lions are now equipped with stealth thanks to Pidge and Hunk’s hard work,” Allura smiled at the pair in a very Princessy way, in Lance’s opinion. “The five of you will go in and hover over the base, using your suit jets to fly down the the roof. Once there you will begin the process of attaching the explosives to the factory’s pylons. When you finish you can climb back into your lions and make your escape a quietly as possible. Once everyone is back in the castle we’ll detonate the bombs, sinking the entire structure. Understood?”  
“Yes _ma’am_.” Lance snapped his sharpest salute, though most of his attention was on Keith. There was still tension in his frame, but he was already turning to Pidge to ask about the explosive charges, so Lance let it go. Shiro didn’t look worried, and he knew Keith much better than Lance did.  
He didn’t have time to worry about it for long before Allura ordered them all to their ships.  
The moment right before a mission, wearing the same uniform as his closest friends as he flew down the zipline to his lion, his Princess’ voice ringing in his ears… It never failed to make him feel like a hero. He felt Blue’s usual amusement tickle his brain; she said his ‘delusions’ were silly, but deep known Lance knew she understood him. Understood how heavy the term ‘hero’ really was, and the self-doubt that often plagued him.  
Swooping out the bay doors Lance activated Ninja Mode and flew down towards the swirling dark red surface of the ocean planet.  
“Is everyone in position?” Asked Shiro, his voice hushed as if subconsciously trying to avoid the Galra’s notice.  
Everyone chorused their agreement, inching their way past the atmosphere, closer and closer to the tiny dot that was the floating Galra compound. Circling around the paladins stopped over a small flat patch of roof far away from where they surmised the main centre of activity would be. Swallowing a quick burst of nerves--no matter how many times he did it Lance would never get used to leaping out of his lion hundreds of metres above the ground--Lance dropped out of Blue’s invisible mouth into the rain. Using his jets to control his descent Lance touched down a little after Shiro.  
When everyone was on the ground they split into three teams: Hunk and Pidge, Keith and Lance, and Shiro by himself--because he was just that good. Tiptoeing away from one another they kept constant contact through their helmets, updating each other on their progress. Keith and Lance had to travel the farthest to reach their designated end of the island, though thankfully the rain was fairly light. It wasn’t until after several minutes of climbing through the scaffolding that held the structure up on it’s floats, jetting between the larger gaps with the surging red water far below their feet that Lance noticed Keith hadn’t spoken once.  
Now, that wasn’t that unusual; Keith wasn’t a chatty guy at the best of times, and during a mission he was especially taciturn, but usually there would have been some grunts, maybe a snide comment or two.  
Switching his comm link to private, Lance said, “You’re pretty quiet over there, space Nico di Angelo. Are you okay?”  
“Space who?” Asked Keith after a beat.  
“Don’t deflect. I gave you a chance to talk to Shiro, but now you’re stuck with Dr Lance M.D., Psychologist extraordinaire. So: whassup fam?”  
Lance could practically _hear_ the eyeroll, but Keith slowed his pace a touch so Lance could keep up. “I’m fine. It’s no big deal.” Keith didn’t elaborate, but Lance didn’t push him. They hopped from beam to beam in silence for another minute or so before Keith spoke again. “I can’t swim.”  
Lance’s eyebrows shot up, but he somehow refrained from squeaking in surprise. Swimming was Lance favourite thing to do in the world, except maybe surf. The feeling of buoyancy, the smooth glide of a perfect dive… it made everything else fall away.  
But aloud all he said was “I can see why that might bother you here.”  
“Yeah.” Sighed Keith.  
“Well, no big deal, if you fall in I’ll just have to rescue you.” Lance blustered. “I don't know if you’ve been paying attention, but I’m a hero of the universe now. Rescuing is my whole deal. Plus, I can swim like I was _born_ in water, which I quite literally was. I can definitely swim for the both of us.”  
Lance wasn’t sure if Keith found his words or his tone reassuring, but he felt something inside him unclench when Keith asked “How were you born in water? Was it an accident?” sounding more like his old self.  
“You never heard of a water birth? They’re super trendy. My mum sat in this heated pool at the, I dunno, midwifery? Midwifery. I can only imagine it looks something like a slow-motion shark attack.”  
Keith choked in surprise and disgust before bursting into laughter. Lance dropped down next to where he had paused to wipe the tears from his eyes and tried to memorise how it felt to smile at each other suspended high above the roiling water of an alien planet. Keith looked away first, kicking Lance gently in the ankle before leaping on ahead. He didn’t say anything more, but Lance knew he was thankful and it made his heart swell with more pride than saving an entire race ever had.  
Soon after they reached their assigned ‘foot’ of the structure. Splitting up the pair soon finished attaching all the charges, radioing their progress in.  
“Excellent work. I’m almost back at the lions, joins us there as soon as you ca--”  
“Lance!” cried Keith from behind him. Whirling around Lance spotted the two Galra sentries as they ran towards the main deck. He quickly activated his bayard and shot them down, but it was too late.  
“He was communicating with someone! They know we’re here!” Keith shouted.  
“Pidge, Hunk, get to lions!” Shiro ordered. “Is there somewhere for you two to hide?”  
“Not really--” Lance cut of by the sound of marching boots hitting concrete.  
“C’mere.” Said Keith, activating his sword. Running lightly over to the red Paladin Lance took up position by his side, far away from the treacherous edge.  
The pair waited in an agony of suspense as the soldiers marched closer. Lance let out a deep breath through his nose, feeling his pulse pound in his temples. A handful of seconds stretched like hours, and suddenly there were there.  
The second the first smudge of purple appeared around the corner Lance was firing. He dropped soldier after soldier, but it soon became clear this was no ordinary patrol group.  
This was an army.  
“They’ve been waiting for us!” Screamed Lance as he dashed to the side, trying to dodge the barrage of laser fire he was faced with. “There’s a whole battalion here!” Lance didn’t have time to decipher Shiro’s answer.  
He was firing his gun constantly, picking off the soldiers who were the closest to him, but it was like draining the ocean with a teacup. Keith was already in the thick of the fighting, sword flashing as he danced and spun. His armor smoked where it had blocked a couple of shots and his forearm shield was being put to good use.  
Lance realised he could hear the wailing of a siren; the whole place was on alert! He prayed the others hadn’t been found and concentrated on dancing through the laser rain. He had somehow gotten separated from Keith, so he began battling toward him, blocking shot after shot with his shield. He was operating mostly on instinct now; duck, shoot, block dodge shoot. He slowly made his way through the crush, a distant voice in his mind astonished he was still alive.  
“Keith!” He shouted for no reason, bashing a soldier to the ground with his shield. The roar of the ocean, wailing of the alarms, and all the Galran screaming pierced his ears oppressively. He couldn’t see anything, he couldn’t see, the rain and the blood and the movement like a riot of dark colour across his vision.  
Then a bright spike of pain shot through his side, coursing through him like electricity. A knife wound? Lance couldn’t tell, he had already shot the woman and moved on.  
The taste of Galran blood was thick in the air, choking him, but he had almost reached Keith’s side.  
How long had they been fighting? Two minutes? He wondered if the others had been caught. They couldn’t hold out for much longer. Lance didn’t feel as if he were fighting separate soldiers. They had blended into one heaving, roiling mass, pressing against him, pressing him back.  
Lance didn’t realise how much ground they had lost until he heard Keith’s screams. There were scant few metres left between them and the sickening drop to the ocean. At this point Lance’s mental dialogue had dissolved into _ohpleaseohGodShiropleasehurrypleasehurryShiroohGod_ , though his body continued to move with precision despite the wound in his side.  
But try as he might they were still losing ground. Lance watched Keith’s moves grow more wild and reckless, he body leaning forward as if his could just push through the Galra and get away from the ledge. The boys were barely a half step from the edge now, the world beyond hidden by a feather grey curtain of rain. This had been the Galra’s plan from the beginning, Lance realised. Sink _them_ before they could be sunk. Their greatest weakness had become their greatest strength.  
In a final desperate rush Lance leapt over a fallen soldier to stand shoulder to shoulder with Keith, pushing back against the tide of Galra, pushing, _pushing_.  
It wasn’t enough. Lance watched as the tall soldier leaned back, his foot coming up. He saw Keith start to shout as he realised what was happening. Lance was still bringing his rifle up when the kick connected.  
Twisting around, Lance’s momentum had propelled him into a dive before Keith had even disappeared from view.  
Later Lance didn’t remember falling. The feeling of his stomach dropping out, the blinding rain, a feeling of silence even as the wind roared in his ears.  
But he remembered the water. His body enveloped suddenly in freezing cold on all sides, true silence everywhere now. A full second where his senses overloaded and he was frozen, hanging suspended in a storm of pain and cold. Then his instincts had him struggling upwards, his boots so heavy.  
Breaking the surface with a gasp that mostly filled his mouth with bitter water Lance desperately cast about for Keith. He felt dread chill him colder than any ocean when he couldn’t immediately see him. A fraction of a second later his caught sight of Keith’s hands and the top of his head, barely cresting the water before dropping below again. His armour was heavy and cumbersome and every stroke shot fire through his side, but Lance was certain he broke some world records he swam to Keith’s side so fast. He allowed Keith to climb him out of the water, clinging to him as Lance treaded water for them both.  
“Are you hurt?” Lance shouted over the roar of the ocean. Keith coughed wetly into Lance’s shoulder, taking several heaving breaths before replying.  
“N-not injured.” Keith choked into his ear.  
Lance breathed a sigh of relief and looked around. They were caught in the choppy waters surrounding the pylons, which is probably why they survived. He tried to peer up at the ledge but couldn’t see much through the rain. He figured they were similarly invisible to the Galra, but also to their friends. “We need to swim out to sea so Blue can get us.” he called.  
“I can’t--”  
“Don’t worry, I said I’d swim for you, didn’t I?” Lance knew his smile was off, but Keith couldn’t see it anyway. “Put your arms around my neck and let your legs trail out behind you.” Lance could swear he felt Keith’s adam’s apple bob against his shoulder in a swallow. He didn’t reply, but slowly, _very_ slowly, he began to unwind his legs from Lance’s waist. “You’re cute in koala-mode!” Lance joked feebly as Keith’s arms tightened around his neck. “Don’t worry, you’re not heavy enough to make me sink. You can climb all over me like a bridge, all my sibs do.” Lance chattered on as Keith maneuvered behind him, arms still wrapped tight around his neck.  
Lance hissed at the loss of heat along his front, all too aware of the way Keith was shivering against him.  
Wasting no time Lance instructed Blue to fly to them and began swimming out away from the base. It was awkward swimming with Keith trailing along half beside him, half on top of him, but he somehow managed. The wind as strong and the red waves were unsettlingly tall. Lance, who was very experienced swimming in the ocean, was intimidated. He marveled at the trust Keith was showing, letting Lance tow him through this raging water, even if there was no other choice.  
They were getting nowhere fast, but Lance kept at it, fighting the current that tried to sweep them back towards the factory. Each wave stuck him the face, filling his mouth with an acrid, chemical tang. The longer he swam the harder it was to keep his head up, choking when his mouth hadn’t clear a wave before breathing.  
It wasn’t long before the numbness set in. Lance was still losing blood into the dark water and the exercise could only keep him so warm. Fearing he would sink at any moment, his leaden clothes dragging them both down into the wine-dark waters, Lance stopped. He risked a look over his shoulder, barely able to make the hulking structure out beyond Keith’s soaked shoulder. “I think this is far enough?” Lance panted to Keith, who turned around for his own look.  
“I don’t think they could see us,” he croaked in response.  
_Thank_ _god_ , he thought. He had promised he could swim for both of them, he’d never forgive himself if they drowned now.  
“Blue?” Lance called huskily, although there was no need to say it aloud.  
He had sensed she was near, but now she broadcast her true location. It was strange being able to feel her body at the same time as his, like he was two places at once. With this strange duel sense he felt Blue drift down, nose coming closer and closer to the water, until she almost touched the water.  
“Going up!” He shouted in warning before a dark maw opened in the sky and bit them straight out of the ocean.  
Tumbling into the cabin in a wet heap Lance begged Blue to fly up and away as fast as she could. She complied, sending him a mental image of a supply cupboard containing blankets.  
Knees like jelly Lance dragged himself up and stumbled to the back of cabin, dragging out two folded space blankets and tossing one to Keith. The irony was not lost on him, but he found he couldn’t get the joke out through his chattering teeth. He struggled to unfold the blanket and wrap it around himself, his hands shaking uncontrollably. He stumbled over to Keith as quickly as he could.  
Lance started in horror at Keith’s blue lips. He was just staring at the folded blanket in his lap, his wiry frame no longer wracked with shudders. Ripping his own blanket off Lance threw it over Keith’s shoulders, muscling him up and into the pilot’s chair.  
“Can’t you heat the interior, Blue?” Lance demanded, and she directed him to a dial on her dash. His motor control was shot, but he figured the temp didn’t matter as long as it was hot. Leaning over Keith Lance grasped the controls, urging Blue faster.  
His brain must have been half frozen, because he still hadn’t tried to contact the others.  
“Sh-sh-shiro? C-c-c-come i-in!”  
“Lance! You’re alive!”  
“J-j-just.” he bit out. “K-k-keith’s st-st-stopped sh-shivering.” Lance hoped Shiro understood the direness of the situation, as he didn’t have the breath to elaborate.  
“Can you make it to the castle?”  
“Y-yeah.”  
“Hunk and Pidge are trapped, I need to help them first. I’ll radio Allura and tell them to get the pods ready.”  
“Th-th-th-thanks, D-dad” Lance smiled a little in relief. Turning around to find Keith’s eyes closed he wondered if he could get him out of his wet suit before they reached Allura.  
As if in response he felt the familiar rumble of Blue exiting the atmosphere and breathed a sigh of relief. Reaching speeds only possible in the vacuum of space, Lance raced towards the white spec that was the Castle of Lions, so happy tears clouded his vision.  
He blinked them out of the way, but they wouldn’t budge. He went to scrub at his eyes but found his arm wouldn't respond. Slipping to the floor of the cabin he bashed his hip and his cheekbone, but he didn’t feel any of it.  
A stray rock crashed into Blue’s nose, flinging Keith’s limp hand into his face. Lance pressed his cheek against it, trying to focus on his ice-cold fingers, but soon those blurred too and he collapsed.  
His last thought was of how glad he was to have been able to swim again.

# ***

Lance awoke groggily, feeling awareness come back to him only moments before the world dropped away and he was falling.  
He landed on a warm, solid chest that smelled like his home-away-from-home.  
“Welcome back buddy.” Shiro said warmly.  
“Keith?” He rasped.  
“ _Gay_.” Said someone--probably Pidge--in the background.  
“He’s fine, he’s just resting.”  
“ _I can’t believe their first words were each other’s names_.” The other voice continued.  
Finally peeling his eyes open Lance squinted around the room. He was in the infirmary with Shiro and Pidge. A subtle stretch confirmed that there was no pain in his side. Realising he was still clasped to Shiro’s chest he straightened, feeling only a little dizzy.  
“I’m hungry,” he announced, even though he wasn’t, really. He did want to see his best friend though, and the kitchen was his best bet.  
Lance was herded into the kitchen and fixed with a bowl of goo and a squishy Hunk hug in no time, courtesy of Mother Hen Shiro. He choked down a little food and got caught up on the events he had missed.  
Pidge and Hunk had actually climbed down the support struts almost to the waterline to avoid detection, but with the guards swarming all above them they had nowhere to go. Shiro had picked them up and apparently Red had followed Blue out to space like an obedient duckling, which didn’t sound like her at all. But then, her paladin had be uncharacteristically subdued that day, so perhaps they were just that closely linked.  
At some point the explosions had gone off; Pidge said it was spectacular to watch the whole compound slip below the surface of the waves.  
By the time everyone got back Allura and Coran had already placed Keith and Lance into healing pods.  
“Apparently there was a _tonne_ of chatter about the ambush as soon as you guys were spotted. Allura and Coran had been on standby for some time by the time I radioed in. Good thing, too. I don’t know which was more worrying; your blood loss or Keith’s hypothermia.” Shiro concluded.  
At the mention of his name Lance was filled with a burning need to see Keith. Standing up he shuffled out of the room, saying something nonsensical and throwing some finger guns over his shoulder. Not hesitating for a second outside Keith’s door Lance stumbled inside, prompting Keith to bolt upright from a dead sleep.  
“Hey,” Lance said a little weakly, coming to stand next the the bed.  
“Hey,” Keith replied, looking up at him uncertainly.  
“You good?” Lance asked after a moment.  
“Yeah.” Keith said, his voice breaking. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Yeah. I’m good. You?”  
“I’m good.” Lance gazed at Keith for a long moment, still feeling kinda fuzzy.  
“Uh, do you need something?” Keith asked after a while, breaking the silence a little sheepishly.  
“Nah, I’m good.”Lance repeated, blinking rapidly to bring him back to the present. After a second he managed a crooked half-smile and saluted Keith as he walked toward the door. “See you later, Keith.”  
Objectively Lance knew that had been a bit weird. Barging into his room only to zone out staring, then immediately leaving? That was a classic dirtbrain scenario. But Keith hadn’t seemed to mind, and now that it was out of the way Lance felt ready for a real sleep.  
He stumbled through a shower and fell into bed within minutes, falling asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How you all enjoyed! Did you catch the 50% Off reference? 
> 
> Don't lurk--leave a comment! I'm lonely up here in the sticks and they really do make my day! 
> 
> Check out my tumblr [Fan(demi)girling]() and cry with me about shipping hell.


	4. Guerilla

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the Galra know they are coming only this planet's crucial but unstable conditions prevent our heroes from being exterminated. How can they win against such odds?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is a bit rushed, but I'm too exited to have finished not to post it. I wrote it on my phone in a hostel bed, so there could be some formatting issues but at least it's done!  
> This was the hardest chapter, I've been stuck on it for ages. The rest is all planned out ^_^  
> Thanks especially to eddiepan, without whose wonderfulness this wouldn't have happened. I hope this chapter is an okay thank you for your kindness.  
> Enjoy!

Lance spat blue leaves out of his mouth.  
“I don’t remember so much mud in _The Jungle Book_.” This witty comment was ignored along with all the others, but Lance couldn’t be blamed for trying to lighten the mood.  
He and his friends were all creeping through the jungle surrounding the Galra compound, hoping to spot some weakness they could use to their advantage. Unfortunately, the Galra--who knew they were coming--had deployed so many troops the factory looked like an angry ant nest, swarming with purple soldiers.  
The ground was wet and swampy, with invisible pools of quicksand--or quick _mud_ , as it were--which could suck you down in a matter of seconds. Lance had to watch his every step carefully, so it wasn’t really a surprise when he glanced up and realised he was surrounded.  
The branches and vines around him were now filled with tiny creatures, about a metre high and covered in blue splotches. Their hands ended in wicked claws, at least ten centimeters long, and each one’s solid black eyes regarded him with intelligence--all 3 pairs of them.  
There were seven of the aliens, silently watching him. They hadn’t attacked yet, probably because Lance, like all his friends, was wearing one of Arz’s special magic suits. If it was working correctly it should make him appear to be one of them.  
“Um, hi guys.” Lance squeaked, hoping they didn’t notice his voice was coming from several feet higher than where his mouth appeared to be. “What’s going on?”  
“Lance? Who are you talking to?” Said Shiro in his ear.  
_Tell your friends we mean you no harm, strangeling._  
“W-what? My friends?” The voice seemed to speak directly into his brain. He couldn’t tell which one had spoken--in fact, it seemed as if they all had.  
“Ah! What are these things?” Keith’s voice cracked in surprise.  
_Tell the red one to lower his weapon._  
“You--how can you--”  
_What one aedichron sees, we all see._  
Lance shivered. These creatures were giving him the heebie jeebies, but if what they said was true they could easily coordinate an attack on his friends. Lance swallowed as he looked at their claws.  
“Keith, man, lower your sword buddy.”  
“What? How did you know my sword is out?”  
“What are you guys all talking about?” Demanded Pidge.  
“Guys, I think this jungle is haunted.” Hunk’s shaking voice chimed in. “I just heard a voice in my head.”  
“It’s the aedichron.” Said Lance. “The native aliens. I think they have like, a hive mind deal going on. They said they’re peaceful…”  
“How did they know it was you, Lance? Are you wearing your suit?”  
“Of course I am! I don’t know, they just knew.”  
“Okay… you said they were peaceful? Maybe ask them if they’ll help us. We could use more information.”  
_The black one can ask us himself._  
“Oh… okay.” Lance realised Shiro had heard them that time. “Well, we’re looking for information about the Galra’s forces here. Can you help us?”  
_Why do you want to know this?_  
“We’re hoping to destroy their factory and free your people. Please, if there is anything you can do to help us--”  
_The purple one’s factory despoils our sacred land, and many aedichron are forced to work in the thermal vents. You think you can defeat them?_  
“We’re going to try.” Keith said firmly.  
_Then follow us._

 

# ***

  
The creatures led the five through the jungle to their settlement: a sprawling city of huts clinging to the bare rock surrounding a thermal vent. The air had an acrid tang, and yellowish clouds hung low over everything.  
_The aedichron maintain the vents, farming the gasses that come off them. They are sacred to our culture. The purple ones have built their facility over one of these vents, which is something we cannot forgive._  
“You mentioned some of you are being used to manage the vents inside?”  
_That is correct. The purple ones--_  
“They’re called ‘Galra’, little dudes.” interrupted Lance helpfully.  
_We know._ Replied the aedichron, their many voices sounding miffed. _They need certain conditions to be maintained, and the vents are very unstable. It would not take much to upset the balance they require for their manufacturing._  
“That makes sense.” Said Pidge. “So, what if something, y’know… happened to go wrong?”  
_The aedichron would be punished. The purple ones made it clear that if we sabotaged the vents all free aedichron would die._  
“Ouch, okay.” Pidge winced and Hunk looked heartbroken, but Lance felt an idea forming.  
“Wait… when you say ‘sabotage’...”  
_It would be possible to instigate an eruption of gas from the vent. It would definitely disrupt the creation of the substance they are synthesising here. It would also poison any living creature who breathed it in._  
“Including an aedichron?”  
_No. We live our whole lives around the vents. We can survive prolonged exposure to their poisons._  
“Hmmm…”  
“What are you thinking, Lance?” Asked Shiro.  
“I think… maybe.” Lance glanced over at the nearest alien. “You guys know these jungles pretty well, do you?”  
_Every aedichron knows every tree in these parts._  
“And you know the locations of all the soldiers here?”  
_Down to the last._  
Lance felt a smile start to creep across his face. “Somebody better get me some manila, this plan is gonna need a heck of a dossier.”

# ***

“I’m still not sure about this, it seems pretty risky.” Whispered Pidge over the comms. The paladins each led a small army of alien warriors, armed with poison spears and little parcels of leaves that, when thrown, burst into a smoke that burned the Galra’s eyes and lungs.  
“Coming here in the first place was risky.” Lance heard Keith whisper back. “The Galra know we are coming. Lance’s plan is the best shot we have.” This vote of confidence made warmth spread through Lance’s chest, coming as it was from such an unexpected source.  
“Are you guys in position?” He asked as quietly as he could. The aedichron insisted that no Galra were within earshot, but it never hurt to be careful.  
“Yes.” Pidge and Keith said in unison.  
“I am.” Confirmed Shiro, who was deferring leadership during this mission to its mastermind, Lance  
“You know it, man.” Hunk’s shaky voice came in last, his confidence in Lance cracking under the pressure.  
Lance turned to their guide. “And your people?”  
_All aedichron stand ready._  
“Okay.” Lance took a deep breath. “Charge!” He shouted and leapt out of the jungle. 

The Galra patrol were taken completely by surprise. All 30 soldiers were downed within minutes thanks to the help of the tiny blue warriors.  
“How’d everyone go?” Panted Lance over his comm.  
“Taken care of.” Said Shiro.  
“No survivors.” Confirmed Pidge.  
“And your people?”  
_We were successful._  
Lance braced himself. “Any casualties?”  
_Few._  
Lance shuddered. He squeezed his eyes shut and willed his guilt and grief back. He knew the risks of his plan.  
“Okay, retreat for now. Someone give me a report about the High Commander.”  
As they tramped back through the bush one of the aliens filled Lance in on the Galran reaction to their surprise attack.  
_They have figured out we’re targeting the patrol groups. They think you will try to lure them into the jungle where you have the advantage. They are recalling their troops to the compound, shoring up its defences. There are now several hundred guards inside the perimeter, no way to get through._  
Lance grinned fiercely. “Perfect.”

# ***

Soon the small group reached an outpost and stopped to rest.  
The place was a tree the way Uluru was a rock. The trunk was as wide around as the Castle of the Lions, with deep splits glittering with crystalline sap. One such hollow, the size of a semi trailer, had been lined with cured skins like a luxurious carpet. Climbing the knobbled bark was easy enough, though Lance was a thousands times slower than the aedichron, who scuttled up the trunk like insects.  
As soon as he was safely inside Lance began issuing orders.  
“Are there anymore soldiers outside the walls?”  
_Two small groups remain._  
“Send whoever is closest to take them out. Now, Team Sex Falcon, commence Operation Pepe.”  
“We really shouldn't have let Lance name everything.” Groaned Pidge over the comms.  
“All these memes are so confusing. Which one is Operation Pepe, again?” Asked Hunk.  
“The one where some aedichron disguised as us pretend to try and lure the Galra into the forest to ensure they retreat.” responded Keith.  
There was a brief, disbelieving silence.  
“What? It was in the dossier.”  
_Sith Lord Lance_ , interrupted an adichron, _the aedichron inside the compound have all been imprisoned._  
Lance sighed. “Yeah. That's part of the plan too. You guys almost at the rendezvous point?” This last was directed at his teammates.  
At their confirmation Lance jumped down from the tree, smiling in relief at the sight of his friends.  
“So what now?” Asked Shiro.  
“We wait for Team Sex Falcon to arrive--”  
“Then take their mask suits to the imprisoned aedichron so they can safely access the… vents… What?” Keith frowned at his friend's expressions.  
“It's so cute how you finish my sentences, babe.” Lance winked, fully expecting a punch in the ribs.  
Instead Keith blushed and muttered “It was in the dossier” over Pidge’s laughter.  
_Our Lord and Saviour Lance Kenobi? We have some damages to report._

# ***

The damages turned out to be the suits--4 out of the 5 were so shredded they no longer worked. All the aedichron survived, though they were badly injured.  
“Oh dear.” said Pidge.  
“Would a single aedichron be enough the destabilize the vents?” Asked Shiro.  
_It would be close to impossible in the time we have._  
“What's plan b?” Asked Hunk. “Is there another way for the aedichron to escape?”  
“Oh yeah, Shiro can tell you, the Galra are _super_ easy to escape from.” Snapped Keith.  
“Keith, don't be rude.”  
“That's not important right now, Shiro!” Pidge scowled. “Our plan is falling apart here--”  
“No, it's not.” Lance said firmly. “I'll go in and sneak back out without a suit.”  
The other five gaped at him for a moment.  
“With that many soldiers in there?! That's _literally_ suicide!” Cried Pidge.  
“There has to be another way.” Hunk sounded a little desperate. “Maybe an aedichron could go and switch places--or do the sabotage themselves!”  
_Only a worker aedichron can get through the security by the vents. We could exchange places with a prisoner, but the Galra would quickly notice our different clothes._  
Even Hunk had to admit the aedichron’s traditional dress of fluorescent green feather skirts was rather distinctive, especially compared with the grey jumpsuits all Galra slaves wore.  
“This is the only way.” Insisted Lance. “If I can get some armour off a dead soldier or something I have a decent chance of making it out, especially if you guys make a distraction.” Personally Lance thought this was bullshit, but the team hesitated. “You know we have no other choice. This mission is too important.”  
There was a tense silence.  
“Then I'll go.” Shiro said finally.  
“No. You're too important, Shiro. You guys can find a new Voltron arm if you have to, but we can't afford to risk our leader right now. Besides, your flashbacks make you... less likely to succeed than me. Face it, if anyone is gonna run into a packed galra base I'm the most sensible choice.” Lance hated the self-disgust that crossed Shiro’s face at the mention of his perceived weakness, but the important thing was no one was arguing with him anymore. They would all stay safe in the forest while he finished this.  
With a nod Lance turned to begin gathering up the suits.  
“Wait.”  
Lance frowned. Trust Keith to argue with him even when he was volunteering to sacrifice himself for his sake.  
“I'll go with you.”  
Lance’s eyes flew wide and Hunk gasped.  
“Why? There's no point risking two of us instead of one--”  
“Our chances of success increase if I go. It's worth the risk--”  
“It's not! It's _my_ mission that failed, it's my responsibility to fix it!”  
“That's not how this works, Lance! I'm coming with your stupid ass whether you like it or not!”  
Keith’s eyes were blazing, refusing to accept Lance’s argument. Lance could already tell there was no talking him out of it. His heart sank.  
“Fine!” Lance shouted, trying not to think about why it upset him so much anyway.

# ***

Lance adjusted his armour for the thousandth time. The dead soldier he'd stolen it off had been around a foot taller than him. Keith had won the rock paper scissors battle for the female soldier's armour, which was only slightly less oversized.  
They were wearing their mask suits over their Galra armour, and were making great time through the compound. It was a tight squeeze on many of the catwalks, and everyone was in a rush to get somewhere, so it was easy to stay lost in the crowd. Lance prayed the same would be true on the way back.  
The prison was guarded heavily, though the chaotic soup of soldiers and robots swirled just as confusingly through here as everywhere else. It didn't take the pair long to locate the aedichron--all the other cells were empty.  
No one stopped them letting themselves in using the handpad. Lance wasn't sure anyone noticed in the crush.  
The oppressed aedichron showed no fear or surprise at their entrance, even as they slipped their anti-id suits off.  
“Are you guys ready?” Lance asked them in an undertone.  
_Yes, Princess Lance._  
“Okay. Operation John Cena is a go. Be careful, and good luck.”  
_Good luck to you as well. Thank you for helping our people._  
Two of the aedichron slipped into the suits and the four of them exited the cell.  
Lance held his breath, but if any of the Galra noticed the number of soldiers in the cell had doubled and two of them were too small for their armour, they gave no indication of it.  
_Maybe that's just how fast Galra breed,_ thought Lance.  
The aedichron split off straight away, instructing the paladins to be out of the compound within 10 minutes if they wanted to survive.  
The clock now ticking the pair rushed for the exit. The main entrance was packed with soldiers guarding the door. Pushing through the crowd with his heart in his mouth Lance couldn’t help glancing at Keith every few seconds, just to be sure he was still there.  
As it turned out, the crowd wasn't the problem.  
Just as they reached the door they were stopped.  
“Where do you think you're going, private? The Commander ordered us all within the walls.”  
Lance swallowed and frantically searched for an excuse. “I, uh, really need the bathroom, but everywhere’s full. Uh, sir.”  
“The what?” The man frowned in confusion.  
“The bathroom? Toilet?”  
“What the hell for?”  
“Well, you know…” Lance trailed off. He glanced at Keith, whose body language was screaming _get out of there now._  
The soldier growled, going from confused to angry in a second. “I obviously _don't_ know or I wouldn't have asked, private! Explain yourself before I put you on waste disposal duty!”  
“I have to urinate!” Lance squeaked in response, praying these wouldn't be his last words.  
The huge man blinked, then his expression turned feral. “The Galra do not have such a bodily function. Guards! Atta--”  
The second half of his command was lost in a gush of blood as Keith buried his sword in his neck.  
And then all hell broke loose.  
If Lance thought it had been chaos before he had been wrong. He and Keith sprinted for the only cover--some kind of hover transport filled with metal blocks.  
“I think, ” Lance leaned around the side to provide covering fire, “that ‘ _we_ ’ ‘ _pissed_ ’ them off.”  
“For crying out lou--Lance! There's a door here!”  
Lance spared a quick glance behind him to see Keith frantically typing on the keypad of some kind of storage closet door.  
“We'll be trapped!”  
“We'll be alive! We can think of a plan in--got it!”  
After a final burst of fire Lance turned to throw himself into the room.  
At first it was too dark to see anything, but soon Lance’s eyes began to adjust.  
“Is that light down there?”  
“I think it's a tunnel.” Said Keith.  
“That's a _vertical drop._ ”  
“More like 45 degrees--”  
Keith was interrupted by the sound of something crashing into the door.  
“Well, I guess we'll see if 45 degrees is survivable. See you on the other side, Mullet Man.”  
Lance grinned at him in the dark and struck a salute, a pose he maintained as he toppled backwards off the edge.  
The first few seconds of his fall were exhilarating, until an exasperated voice said “We have jetpacks you jackass.” from a couple metres above him.  
Lance activated his at the last moment as had been his plan all along and sighed from his position atop the pile of metal blocks below.  
“You have no sense of fun.”  
“I have no sense of fun? You just missed an opportunity to use a jetpack.”  
Lance looked up at where Keith stood a few metres away looking far too pleased with his comeback. The dim light illuminated his dorky grin and soulful eyes and Lance knew.  
He would do anything to keep this boy alive.  
Swallowing his feelings back Lance finally took a look around.  
They stood on some kind of recycling heap, a pile of scrap ingots several metres high. It was so tall the top of the pile actually extended into the chute, so they would have to climb down the sides a little to escape.  
“Man, the Galra need to take the recycling out.” Lance commented as they slid down the sides as quietly as possible.  
Keith reached the opening first.  
“See anything?”  
“There are about thirty Galra out there. I think they're just waiting, we could--oh shit.”  
Lance closed his eyes. “What?”  
“They're starting to climb.”  
“Can I pick them off from up here?”  
“That's not the real issue. This whole place is going to become a giant smoke ball in about one minute.”  
Lance opened his eyes. “Keith?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Promise me something.”  
“Um, okay. What?”  
“Promise me you'll free the next planet before you come rescue me.”  
“What?” Keith turned around sharply, his eyes searching.  
“I've been thinking. How can we win when the entire fucking empire knows our whole plan? We got incredibly lucky that this planet was so unstable. Next time they'll crush us. The best way to win is to trick them, and the best way to do that is from inside, under interrogation--”  
“No! Lance! I don't know what self-sacrificial bullshit has been going on with you today but fuck that! We can't form voltron without you!”  
“We can't form voltron if we both die here either.” Lance grabbed Keith hard by the shoulders. “ _This is the only way to win._ Promise me. Attack the next base before you come for me. You're a great soldier, you know this is the best plan. Trust me.”  
Keiths throat clicked as he swallowed. For a moment Lance worried he'd misjudged him, but then Keith’s shoulders slumped and he nodded. “Okay.” He rasped. “I promise.”  
Lance’s heart broke at the expression on the other boy's face, but there was no more time.  
Crushing Keith to his chest he buried his nose in his dark hair and tried to memorise how it felt to hold him.  
And then he was scrambling down the mountain, shooting soldiers as he went.  
The next few moments were a blur of laser fire and shouting as Lance drew the soldiers away from the mountain, yelling things about revenge designed to make them think Keith was dead.  
He was halfway through a slightly edited version of Inigo Montoya’s speech when the compound exploded with noise. Sirens of every conceivable variety went off, and an acrid stench burned Lance’s nostrils.  
“The vents!” Someone shouted, and several of the Galra rushed to open the doors.  
They dropped dead immediately.  
The others began shouting something about poison protocol, but Lance had just gotten his second noseful and felt his consciousness slipping away.  
His last thought was how Keith had hugged him back.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might edit this later for pacing but I'm pretty impressed I wrote anything at all :P Did you think it was okay? 
> 
> But the real question is, do you forgive me for the memes?


	5. Lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance has been captured by the Galra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm getting heaps written these days but it all has to happen on my phone. I'm posting this on a bus bc it has free wifi--my first Internet access since my last chapter! 
> 
> Content warning for mild torture and mild gore. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy ^_^

Electricity arced through Lance’s body and he couldn't hold back a scream. The moment seemed to stretch on forever, his back arching as every muscle spasmed. All he could think about was the pain, the fire in his bones, and how he'd rather die than feel this way for another second--  
And then it's over. Lance slumped against the wall, only his wrists chained above him keeping him upright. A strong metallic taste pervaded his mouth and his heart was pounding so fast and irregular that Lance truly feared it would stop.  
“Well?”  
Shivering with the effort Lance dragged his head up to stare blearily at the Galra before him.  
The tall, androgynous alien introduced themselves as the head of interrogation several days ago, and they had been spending a lot of _quality_ time with Lance since then. After collapsing outside the compound Lance had awoken chained in this cell. He still didn't know what had happened--had they been successful? How many Galra died? Were his friends okay? Questions like these were punished with a swift backhand or well aimed kick, but it hadn't discouraged Lance from asking.  
He knew, at the very least, that they were alive,and that their lions--including blue--were currently safe. It was these things that comprised the bulk of the Galra’s questions.  
Lance could hardly stand the thought of another jolt. He thought if he knew his friends would be killed he might find more strength to hold out, but as it was he felt the temptation to give in even more strongly. His plan to ‘reveal’ false information was a risky one. The Galra must know it was a possibility, and it wasn't as if Lance had proof. His friend's safety, the success of the mission, his own life--it all hinged on his acting.  
So Lance had been enduring the torture as best he could, trying to fight through the voice in his head whispering _“it's just a lie, there are no consequences, you can say it now and stop the pain.”_  
But Lance was approaching his limit. After days of no sleep, never knowing when the shocks would merely tickle or scream through his tissue like a wildfire, slowly losing his certainty that his memories and convictions were real… he was worn out.  
“I…” Lance’s voice was raw from screaming. He barely remembered how to form words--he couldn't even tell if he was speaking English or Spanish. “I-I know… the lions…” Lance trailed off again, trying to remember the carefully worded sentences that had run through his mind every second he was under torture.  
The Galra tilted their head, as patient as the earth, and gestured for him to continue.  
“The lions were damaged.” Lance finished in a broken whisper. “W-we attacked on foot last time because we had to…”  
The Galra shook their head sadly. “Oh Lance.” The blue paladin cringed at the sound of his name. “Tell the truth, please. We both know you attacked on foot because you didn't want to harm any natives.”  
“When has that ever stopped us before?” Lance asked, bitterness bleeding through his fear. He couldn't help thinking of all the innocents who had been harmed because of him since he became a so-called ‘defender of the universe’.  
The Galra didn't answer, so Lance continued, bolstered by the thought of what he owed those victims. “The plan was to blow up the vents from the sky. The aedichron would have been okay but your… your manufacturing conditions would have been ruined.” This was also a lie--the paladins hasn't known what would happen or how it would affect life on the planet should they do that.  
“I see.” The Interrogations master didn't look convinced, but still asked “and how exactly did the lions become damaged?”  
“In the attack on the ocean compound. The black lion… it can barely fly. And the Green and yellow lions aren't fit for combat, a-and no one but me can fly Blue.” This last part probably wasn't a lie, but Lance had hope Allura would be able to pilot the blue lion in his place.  
The Galra raised his eyebrows. “And the red lion?”  
Lance closed his eyes. _Keith._ “The red lion is fine. Its paladin was with me during the attack, we both made it out. But he has discipline problems. The others would never let him go on a mission alone.” The best lies held a grain of truth, and several months ago this might have been possible; but not any longer. They had all grown into a family over the last few months, and Keith’s prickly trust was even more valuable for how grudgingly is was given.  
“I see,” the alien said again. “And which planet will your… ‘team’... be targeting next?”  
Lance felt relief wash over him. He could tell the truth about this, at least. “I don't know. The Princess won't tell us anything for some reason. We often don't even get the name of the planet, just the coordinat-- _ahhh!_ ”  
The Galra’s finger bore down on a small blue button on their Pain Remote™ and Lance was once again on fire.  
When the pain subsided Lance began to cry. Tears leaked from his eyes as he panted, overcome with the unfairness of it all, the wish to go home, eat some of his mother's banana bread, and be a normal boy. “I-it's true!” He croaked. “She probably knew we'd get captured and in-interrogated!” Lance was ashamed of how his voice was shaking. He was about two seconds away from pissing his pants and he could feel his resolve leaving him.  
He had volunteered for this, but if any of the others were here they'd be doing a better job. Pidge’s lies would be flawless, Hunk would keep his sanity and positivity through this and worse. Shiro already survived this several times over, and Keith… Lance swallowed. Keith was twice the soldier--twice the _man_ \--Lance would ever be. Here, in his mind, possibly moments from a painful death, he could admit that. But then again--Lance wouldn't wish this suffering in his worst enemy. Literally. So he straightened his spine, pictured his friends, and was thankful--truly _thankful_ \--he was here instead of them.  
“Tell me again about the lions?”  
Lance looked the alien in the eye. There was nothing there but a cold, detached sort of interest, like they were studying a bug. He knew there would be more pain. He might even die. But his families, new and old, would live.

# ***

Lance couldn't move.  
He hung suspended in a world of pain and misery, only kept conscious by the drugs the Galra had fed him.  
It had worked. His half-baked plan had actually worked. The Galra had lost--their 2nd last useful planet was free.  
Needless to say they didn't take it very well. Lance had been suffering reprisals for several hours since the defeat. The Galra assured him his friends were dead, but if that were the case they would have killed him by now.  
That small hope was all that kept Lance even half sane. The man currently taking the “break Lance’s bones one by one” shift had stepped out--probably for a mid-coital cigarette, judging by how much he'd been enjoying himself.  
The waiting made it worse somehow. Lance almost wished he'd hurry up and come back just to break the suspense.  
As if in answer to his thoughts the door slid open. Lance didn't turn to look--he wasn't sure he could. Quiet footsteps padded swiftly across the room, and Lance spared a brief thought for how they differed from the usual self-righteous stomp.  
And then there was a hand over his mouth and a voice hissing in his ear to be quiet, quiet, and Lance knew that voice, knew that smell wrapping around him, knew the taste of leather against his lips from countless training sessions.  
“K-eith?” Lance whispered, his voice cracking the word in two.  
“Yes, it's me. Can you walk?” Lance shook his head. “Fuck.” Keith grimaced in the dim purple light and Lance marveled at his beautiful long eyelashes. He'd thought he'd never see the other boy again.  
Keith stretched on his toes to work on the handcuffs, the length of their bodies pressed together. Lance could feel his breath ruffling his hair.  
It was beginning to hit him that Keith was really here. His thoughts raced-- _he's alive, he's in danger, I'm saved, the guard_ \--but when he tried to speak only get one word out.  
“Keith.”  
“Yeah?”  
“ _Keith._ ”  
With a _click_ Lance’s cuffs released, and he bit back a groan at the pain in his arms as he lowered them, slumping against the wall for support. Keith dropped down to help steady him, and Lance found himself missing the warmth.  
Their eyes met, and this time Lance saw the emotion beneath Keith’s facade. Fear and guilt and relief tangled behind his eyes. The room was so quiet Lance heard Keith’s throat click as he swallowed.  
“Yeah?”  
“Are you really here?” Lance breathed, a powerful warmth spreading beneath his breastbone that made him feel like he could fight Zarkon bare-handed.  
Keith only nodded, his eyes roaming Lance’s face a little desperately. The hand supporting Lance tightened around his upper arm, and Lance felt them sway together. His eyes dropped to Keith’s mouth and he heard the other boy's sharp inhalation.  
And then a bright light blinded him and he felt more than saw Keith whip out his sword. “CODE 48!” A deep voice shouted.  
Blinking rapidly Lance heard the sound of a struggle, his knees trembling as he tried to move away.  
By the time his vision cleared the guard was dead, but more would be on the way.  
“Come on,” said Keith, wrapping one arm around Lance and half dragging him through the doorway.  
“Where's the castle?” Lance gritted, the adrenaline somehow keeping him on his feet.  
“It's just my lion.” Keith glanced across at him. “The others wanted to wait until it was safer before rescuing you, so I sort of… Came alone.”  
Lance blinked, for once at a loss for words.  
Keith looked away again. “It's close. If we can just make it to the--”  
Lance never learned where they were headed. Keith was interrupted by a shot from behind, just as the pair were crossing an empty flight hanger.  
Shoving the blue bayard into Lance’s hand Keith spun to face the oncomers, looking fully prepared to take on a magically enhanced alien squadron alone.  
Lance wouldn't let that happen.  
Willing his busted fingers around the trigger of his rifle, Lance was only a little wobbly as he began firing into the crush, expertly avoiding Keith as he entered the melee.  
There weren't many soldiers, but they were all enhanced. Keith was having a tough time inflicting damage as the aliens forced him into defense.  
Lance landed a lucky shot in the neck of a small, inhumanly fast Galra, felling him immediately. He quickly realised, however, that his laser fire barely fazed the armored giants.  
This was probably the only reason he was still alive. A broken escaped prisoner, his dominant hand dangling useless by his side--clearly, he was not the biggest threat on the field. Lance realised the plan was to overwhelm Keith before taking them both prisoner.  
Eyes darting around the battle Lance tried to spot a weakness, think of a plan.  
The soldiers were all very disciplined, but they relied heavily on their enhancements.  
A woman with strong prosthetic shoulders hefted a giant hammer above her head, aiming to brain Keith while his focus was elsewhere.  
Seeing his opportunity, Lance aimed a shot into her mechanical armpit.  
With a hiss her machinery broke, her arms going limp. Her furious scream was shortened by Keith’s sword piercing her throat.  
After this Lance began targeting the Galra’s vulnerable technology, and for a time things were looking up. He and Keith operated like well oiled machine; Lance crippled and Keith executed.  
But the Galra caught on quickly. Soon a man holding a wicked looking weapon with three sharp prongs engaged Lance.  
Lance stumbled back, ignoring the pain in his probably-fractured ankle, trying to keep some distance between them.  
This soldier had no obvious enhancements, but he hardly needed them to defeat Lance in his state.  
Firing continuously to keep the other at bay Lance glanced over at Keith, praying he would be in a position to help.  
Keith was focused on fighting a Galra duo who fought with an electrified net stretched between them. It seemed to be taking all his concentration to keep his sword free, which is why he didn't see the sniper perched on a catwalk above the action.  
Lance watched as the alien lined up his shot.  
He shouted a warning but there was no time. Out of his peripherals Lance saw his opponent approach but his defense was already dropping, his gun coming up even as the sniper's finger tightened on the trigger.  
Lave couldn't follow what happened next without magical prosthetic eyes, but then the sniper's corpse was plummeting to the ground as his bullet flew wide.  
But even as the laser whizzed safely past Keith’s ear Lance felt a hot wetness seep into clothes. Glancing down, he beheld the strange weapon sticking out of his stomach.  
His ears were filled with ringing laughter, loud, too loud. Without looking up Lance splattered the Galra’s brains over the floor.  
His vision was beginning to go spotty, but he couldn't stop staring at the place he'd been impaled. Distantly he heard Keith screaming his name. He had begun to shake so violently he could barely stand, blood pooling at his feet.  
And then there were hands on his face, forcing him to look up.  
He had never seen Keith look so afraid.  
“Lance!” He half sobbed. “Don't you dare fucking go to sleep, you fucker. Stay with me!” Lance found he couldn't reply, couldn't even nod. Keith was supporting his full weight now, and he knew he had only seconds of consciousness left.  
Unable to bare the heartbreak on his companion's face, Lance gathered up his last drop of energy. Even as he felt himself slipping into darkness, he somehow whispered “Everything's okay.”  
It was a lie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how was it? I literally live for comments so please feel free to leave even a short one :)
> 
> See you next chapter!!!


	6. Voltron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance awakes to find love is an even greater challenge than the entire Galran army.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew! This has been a Trip. But it was fun. Was it fun for you?  
> I'm posting this from an airport after 30 hours of travelling, with another 10 to go. I'm a bit brain dead but I'd rather just post it:3 Enjoy the (hopefully) exiting conclusion!!

This time Lance awoke alone.  
He stepped out of the healing pod on legs as unsteady as a newborn giraffe’s. Holding onto the edge he glanced around the infirmary. It was lit with a dim blue glow, but the hall beyond was dark. A quick voice command revealed it was almost 3:00am, Castle Time.  
Tentatively Lance pressed a hand to his wound through his suit, but found it was only a little tender. He wished he could look, to replace the image of a triple impalement with a reassuring scar, but the pale grey pod suit zipped in the back.  
Feeling a little less dizzy Lance began to walk through the castle in search of life, leaning against the wall for support. Room after room was dark, and Lance was trying to decide if he should go to sleep or knock on Shiro’s door when he saw a light.  
Somehow his feet had led him to the training deck, and he was less than surprised to see Keith doing drills inside. Butterflies exploded in his stomach even as his heart jumped.  
Taking a moment to gather himself, Lance couldn't help but notice how tired the other boy looked. Had he been pulling late nights like this often?  
Taking a quick breath, Lance stepped through the doors.  
“Did you order a pizza with extra sausage?”  
There was a clatter as Keith’s sword hit the ground. He stared, frozen, for a few long seconds, and Lance took the opportunity to study him.  
There were dark smudges under his eyes, and he was panting heavily. He'd clearly been here a long time, pushing himself hard.  
He still looked beautiful.  
As Keith’s paralysis wore off and he ran over to crush him in a fierce embrace, Lance remembered the moment they shared in his cell. As his arms came up to squeeze him back just as hard and he buried his nose in Keith’s neck, smelling shampoo and clean sweat, he realised.  
He was in love with Keith.  
“You're not supposed to be out for another week.” Keith mumbled into his shoulder.  
“That explains the lack of a ‘Lance is Alive’ parade. I was beginning to think you guys didn't like me.”  
“I don't like you.”  
“I can tell. This is definitely a hate-hug right here.”  
Keith huffed a laugh and his arms tightened for a moment before he stepped away.  
“How long was I out?”  
“Twenty three days.” Keith replied. “You probably shouldn't have made it, but when they realised I was gone the others followed in the castle. They came in right after you passed out.”  
“I’m…” Lance hesitated. “Im sor--”  
“I'm sorry.” Keith said in a rush.  
“What? What for?”  
“For letting you go that day in the jungle. For coming alone and getting you stabbed.”  
Keith wouldn't meet his eyes, so Lance touched his face to encourage him.  
“I know it's hard for you, but don't be an idiot.” Keith snorted and raised his head. “You saved the universe and me.” Lance’s fingers were still on Keith's cheek. He quickly dropped them and looked away. “I'd say that's worth thanking you for. But I'll deny it if you tell the others I said that.” Lance glanced up through his lashes to see Keith smiling. He smiled back for a moment, before remembering. “Oh, hey.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Can you help me with my suit? I want to see my scar.”  
The colour drained from Keith’s face. “You haven't seen it?”  
“I may be incredibly flexible--Hunk can tell you--but even I can't unzip this by myself.”  
Keith swallowed, but indicated for him to turn around. Lance felt himself flush as the other boy slowly unzipped the suit, his pale fingers brushing brown skin.  
He still looked pale when Lance turned back around, stripping his arms out of the clinging material and letting it hang around his hips  
He soon forgot about Keith’s complexion, however.  
Clustered above and to the left of his navel were the three partially-healed wounds. The highest was simply a ragged scar, pink and puckered and ugly. But the other two… were different. Silver metal plates sat flush with his belly, somehow fused to the skin around it. They were both shaped like a pointed oval, a matching pair of flying saucers on his stomach. Brushing his trembling fingers over them he saw some lights flicker across their surface.  
“What…?”  
“Your organs were all severely damaged. We had to put you in cryo for a week while we searched for a cure. Finally Allura made contact with this highly advanced alien society and they installed prefab… I dunno, guts. The panels are for maintenance or whatever and the lights have some meaning, I dunno, Allura can tell you…” Keith seemed to realise he was babbling and trailed off uncertainly, his eyes searching.  
“So, I'm a cyborg now?” Keith nodded. “ _Wicked._ ” Lance grinned. Laughing at the relief on the red paladin’s face he ruffled his soft hair and smiled. Finally relaxing, Keith smiled back, a genuine one that made Lance’s breath catch.  
“We should… probably let the others know you're awake,” said Keith after a moment.  
Lance watched as he turned away, crossing to the intercom to alert the others. Before he knew it he had followed him, coming up behind, his fingers brushing his shoulder. Keith turned in surprise just as Lance leaned in and their lips brushed, just for a moment.  
Keith’s eyes were wide and his mouth hung open a little, shock the only expression on his face when Lance pulled back.  
But before he had the chance to regret his move he was swept up in a giant hug from Hunk as Pidge screamed at him for being an idiot. Soon Shiro and Allura joined the celebration, and within five minutes Lance had received more hugs than he'd gotten since coming to space.  
“Oh man, I'm so glad you're okay. I was so worried!” Cried Hunk, who was still holding his hand.  
“That was an incredibly brave thing you did.” Said Allura.  
“And incredibly risky!” Added Shiro.  
“Why is Keith so red?” Asked Pidge, who was apparently already over his miraculous recovery.  
“Ah, he just can't handle the sight of my sexy robot abs.” Winked Lance. “You ready to welcome me to the cyborg club, Shiro?”  
“I'm ready to welcome you to _bed_.” Dad replied.  
Suddenly realising just how exhausted he was, Lance shuffled off to his room, the congregation following him and filling him in on recent events. He snuck a few looks at Keith, but he was just staring into the distance with an unreadable expression.  
Once he'd said his goodnights, carefully not looking at Keith, Lance lay awake replaying the moment over in his head.  
He hadn't really been thinking at the time, just following his instincts. He may not be the best at understanding people, but he was pretty sure he hadn't misread the situation. Then again, he hadn't exactly gotten a favorable reaction, either.  
Lance groaned and buried his face in his pillow. He knew he should sleep, and soon--he could feel the need for it in his bones. But for now his mind was swirling with images of torture and death, intermingled with storm-grey eyes, a quiet laugh, and the puff of someone's breath against his lips.  
Sleep was a long time coming.

# ***

The next few days felt deceptively normal. If not for the steel plates under his shirt and the way Keith avoided being alone with him, Lance might have believed the past month had been a dream.  
After all, he had been asleep for most of it.  
His strength returned quickly, and soon they were hosting their first strategy meeting for liberating the final planet.  
“So.” Began Allura. “This is an extremely small moon, and was completely uninhabited before the Galra arrived. It's surface is composed mostly of ice.  
“We can expect the Galra to bring the full force of their army to this battle, but we haven't any choice but to fight. We'll need Voltron.  
“Lance, how soon can you pilot your lion?”  
“I'm fully healed, Princess. The Martinez’s are an extremely healthy and _virile_ family.” Lance winked.  
Allura frowned, but ultimately ignored his comment. “There is good news. The Galra’s smaller ships just don't have the firepower to damage Voltron, so they'll bring larger, heavier ships. These are not as fast or maneuverable. This battle will mostly take place in the surrounding space, so if we utilise hit-and-run tactics and maintain a randomized wormhole to retreat to, then we stand a chance.”  
“What's the place called?” Asked Hunk.  
The Princess hesitated. “The coordinates are 111-194 290-794--”  
There was a clatter as Pidge thrust out of her chair, screaming “What the _fuck_ \--!”  
“ _Pidge_ , calm down--!” Cried Allura.  
All the colour had drained from Shiro’s face, and he seemed to be staring at something only he could see.  
“What's going on?” Hunk shouted over everyone. “Pidge, what--?”  
“It's Kerberos.” Said Keith quietly.  
Lance gasped. Pidge seemed to notice her shouting was stressing Shiro out even more, and soon there was quiet.  
“Are you okay, Shiro?” Asked Hunk kindly.  
Shiro started and looked around, blinking rapidly. “Y-yeah. I'm fine.” He wet his lips. “I'm fine guys.”  
“Are you going to be able to fight?” Asked Allura in concern.  
“Is that all you care about?” Pidge rounded on her again, but Shiro waved her off, sounding more like himself as he admonished her.  
“Allura cares about the fate of all free people, Pidge. I'm seriously fine, everyone. Thank you for your concern. You're great team members. Maybe we should get back to the discussion?”

# ***

The day of the battle arrived all too quickly, and everyone was quiet and on edge. Lance tried his best to keep up morale, but even he couldn't dispel the fog of tension hanging in the air.  
Even Hunk skipped breakfast that day. Lance pulled on his armour with shaking fingers, trying to think of nothing.  
All too soon they were in their lions, flying beside the castle towards a beautiful blue hole in space time.  
“You guys doing okay?” Shiro broke the silence over the comms.  
“Are you okay, Shiro?” Asked Keith, real concern thrumming under his snark. Lance stubbornly ignored the way his heart _twitched_ at the sound of his voice in his ear.  
“Don't worry about your old dad.” Shiro said with a smile in his voice. “We're together. We have Voltron. I'm not worried.”  
Lance felt a smile form despite himself. Soon they were streaking towards the wormhole, united in spirit, and for a time Lance truly believed they could win.  
Filled with adrenaline, the five burst through into a warzone.  
The sky around the tiny moon was thick with warships, each one twice the size of the castle. Several larger ships were scattered among them--Lance was reminded of aircraft carriers, though these could have spanned continents. In the distance was the blue shadow of Pluto itself, smaller even than Earth's moon.  
A shudder ran through Lance. Looking at that distant rock he wanted to burst into tears. His very own solar system. A few second’s flight from home.  
But it was too risky. Even if they won today, betraying their interest in the small blue planet only a few lightyears away would put their home in mortal danger.  
Bolstered by the idea of this army descending on his home planet, Lance maneuvered Blue into position.  
“Ready, paladins?” Called Allura. “And… form Voltron! Now!”  
Just as the first few lasers streaked past, the five friends began their transformation.  
No matter how many times Lance did this he would never get used to it. The feeling of euphoria as part of his consciousness melded with his teammates--human and feline. In that moment, they could do anything.

# ***

Reality soon came crashing down.  
They held their own for some time--darting in and out of the wormhole, attacking with deadly force before streaking away, maneuvering around the larger ships with skill. But soon the tide began to turn.  
Just as voltron seemed to finally be making headway through the crush--Lance could almost see patches of space between the blanket of ships--the warships began to back off. At first Lance thought it was a retreat, but he was wrong. The Spacecraft Carriers™ lumbered forward, opening giant hatches in their bellies that could have swallowed Kerberos whole.  
For a moment nothing happened. And then Lance saw it.  
“Dear God.” Said Shiro.  
“Is that…” Pidge murmured.  
“An gundam!” Cried Lance.  
And indeed, each ship was birthing a huge robot into the sky, each one a colossal black replica of Voltron.  
“What should we do?”  
“Retreat for now.” Shiro ordered. “We don't know what those things are capable of.”  
“It's cool, I got this.” Lance said with feigned confidence, even as he guided Blue toward the wormhole. “You must run away, Shinji! You can't do this! Daddy will never be proud!”  
“What is he going on about?” Asked Keith.  
“Ignore him,” responded Pidge. “He's just ref--oh _shit!_ ”  
A shudder ran through Voltron’s frame, throwing Lance against his harness. One of the robots had somehow caught up to them and caught Voltron by the leg--the blue leg.  
Keith immediately smashed Voltron’s sword into its face, but nothing much happened. Hunk tried to kick them free, which succeed in denting the robot's head somewhat, but was ultimately useless.  
Meanwhile the wormhole was surrounded by ships and the rest of the No-ltrons. Even as Lance watched one lobbed a squarish device into the centre of the hole, causing a spiderweb of purple to fracture the glowing disk.  
“The wormhole has been corrupted! Trying to pass through now would kill you!” Allura cried.  
Lance began to shake. If only he could do something; but the robot had Blue totally immobilized. He could taste defeat.  
And then, from out of what appeared to be an empty patch of space, a great orange laser smashed into the colossus’ wrist, tearing a burning hole through the machinery and causing the fingers to go limp.  
Twisting free Voltron whipped about, the five searching for their allies, but though the sky was now thick with orange laser fire, no ships could be seen.  
The Galra seemed equally blind, their ships falling like flies. The giant that attacked them was now drifting, the purple lights in its eyes permanently extinguished.  
Finally they caught a glimpse of an allied ship. The Galra had long since begun opening fire into space, and a stray bullet had struck the craft, causing it to fizzle into visibility.  
“I know that tech! That's a Zardozi ship!” Cried Pidge.  
“The Zardozi? What are they doing here?” Asked Keith.  
_They are here to aid you._ Said a voice in Lance’s mind.  
“Did I just hallucinate an aedichron?” Asked Hunk.  
_There are many free creatures at this battle, yellow one. We have come to fight for the liberation of all. We are the New Resistance._  
“My people voted for the name ‘Voltron’s Army’.” Said a familiar voice over the comms.  
“Arz!”  
A new wormhole opened behind them, and an incredible array of ships began pouring out into the dark sky. Every planet Voltron had freed seemed to be represented, as well as many that hasn't they directly impacted.  
“How… What…” For one Lance was the most articulate of their group, but that wasn't saying much.  
“Unrest and rebellion have existed as long as the Empire. A common cause, a uniting champion--the resistance had been stirring since Voltron’s return. When my people began to spread the news that a decisive blow was to be struck at last, many millions rose up in response.”  
“This is incredible! Thank you, Arz! Thank you, everyone!” Cried Princess Allura as the others cheered.  
“I must go; only Zardozi can control the cloaking systems, and we will be needing it.”  
“Good luck, my friend.” Said Shiro.  
“Be careful!” Called Pidge.  
“Don't believe in yourself, believe in the me that believes in you!”  
“Shut up, Lance.”

# ***

They win.  
Many thousands lost their lives, but after what felt like days Voltron stood atop the smoking hulk of the final factory to proclaim their victory.  
For one night only Pluto became a party planet as thousands of warriors expressed their joy.  
At first the five join them, euphoria burning hot in their chests. There was music, alien wine, and wild dancing. Hundreds of cultures blended together, united. Lance felt the whirl of colour and joy fill him up, and suddenly he needed to find Keith.  
Pushing through crowds of revelers he searched and searched, until finally he spotted a familiar red helmet.  
Keith was standing beside his lion, staring up at the stars.  
Lance wished he could see his expression.  
“Keith?”  
The other boy flinched. “Yeah, Lance?” He said without looking at him.  
“I…” For once Lance was at a loss for words. He wished he could just hug Keith, reassure himself that they both survived, share some of his swelling happiness with the other paladin. But Keith’s body language made it clear he would not welcome being touched. “Can we go inside you lion?” He finally asked.  
Keiths shoulders hunched, but after a moment he nodded. Marching to the mouth with the air of one facing execution Keith let him inside.  
Even with the tense atmosphere Lance couldn't contain his curiosity. None of them let others into their lions lightly--it was a very personal space. And none were more private than Keith; no one had ever been inside Red to Lance’s knowledge.  
Coming to a stop behind the pilot's chair Keith turned, removing his helmet and squaring his shoulders.  
“Look,” he frowned and told Lance’s shoulder. “I know you're straight.”  
Lance dropped his helmet. Of all the things he thought Keith might do or say, that wasn't one of them.  
“What?”  
“That's why you're here, right?”  
Lance blinked. “I'm literally here for the opposite reason.” Keith frowned even more, but finally met his eyes in confusion. “Dude. I came to tell you that I lo--”  
“ _Don't._ ” Keith turned away looking pained.  
“Don't what?”  
“Don't say shit you don't mean!” He cried.  
“And how exactly do you know I don't mean it?” Lance snapped, his excitement souring in his belly.  
“You like _girls_ , Lance. You're only-- _fixating_ on me because there's no one else available. Is just the--adrenaline, or something--you don't really--”  
“ _Keith._ ” With a few swift steps Lance closed the distance between them. Keith turned his face away, but didn't try to escape. “It's true I've never liked a boy before, but I like _you_. Do we really need labels in space?” Tentatively he reached out to touch the other boy's shoulder, feeling the full-body shudder that ran through him at the contact. Lance swallowed. “You said _I_ like girls. Does that mean you..?”  
Keith hunched in on himself. “I'm gay.”  
Lance let out a breath. “Okay.” He steeled his nerves. “Okay. Do you like me?”  
Keiths head came up. The look he gave Lance was pained and more than a little desperate. He didn't answer for several long moments, his mouth pressed in a quivering line.  
Then he seemed to give up.  
All the tension bled out of him and he slumped forward, his forehead hitting Lance’s chest with a muffled thump.  
Lance’s breath caught. He brought his arms up tentatively, afraid of frightening him away.  
“Is that a yes?”  
Keith was trembling with fine shudders, though his voice sounded normal when he responded.  
“Of course it is, dumbass.”  
Lance laughed, feeling giddy, and buried his nose in Keith’s hair. “Yeah, but you _like_ this dumbass, so who's the real loser here?”  
Keith groaned, but his exasperation was belied by the hands now gripping Lance’s suit.  
For a time they just stood there. Lance thought he'd never been so happy. The hug made him feel warm inside in a way he hadn't felt since losing contact with his family.  
“Are you sure this isn't going to ruin everything?” Keith asked quietly. “What if we fight and can't form Voltron? If you break up with me we can't exactly avoid each other.” Lance sighed, but a part of him was warmed by the way Keith hadn't even considered breaking up with _him._  
“I can't guarantee things will go well, but you can be sure I'll try my hardest. We're good soldiers, Keith, and we're family. I know we can make it work no matter what, so we're entitled to live our lives. Besides…” Lance bit his lip. “I--I love you, Keith.”  
There was a long moment of quiet and Lance feared he'd fucked up. He'd come on too strong, or maybe Keith would think he wasn't serious, or maybe--  
“I…” It was barely a whisper. “I love you, too.”  
Later, when they tell the others, Lance swears up and down that Keith's a liar, that he didn't cry. But as the words go supernova in his chest Lance can't help the prickle of tears that sting his eyes anymore than he can help the sun go down.

# ***

Battered and exhausted the paladins finally return to the castle sometime in the early morning. The adrenaline and elation having worn off the five disappear into their rooms almost immediately.  
But Lance had barely stripped off his armour when a soft knock echoed through his silent cabin.  
The door slid open to reveal Keith, dressed in sweats and a black t-shirt. Lance let him in wordlessly, the pair climbing into bed in relative silence. Limbs tangled and bodies pressed as they shared their warmth and comfort. Lance’s breath shuddered through Keith’s dark hair as equally dark lashes brushed his collarbone.  
For a long time they just breathed together, but eventually Lance spoke.  
“Hey Keith.”  
“Yeah?” Came the sleepy reply.  
“Are you my boyfriend now?”  
There was a pause. “Do we really need labels in space?” Keith said finally, sounding amused by his own reference.  
Lance let the silence stretch, trying to rationalise himself out of his disappointment. He got so caught up in his internal monologue he almost missed Keith’s quiet addendum.  
“But yeah. I'm your boyfriend.”  
Lance smiled into the darkness and let his eyes slip closed. Gathering Keith to him he settled effortlessly into dreamland, unable the shake the feeling that everything was right in the universe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, sorry for the references :P I had a hard time choosing between the "pizza with extra sausage" line and "Sup. David Bowie sends his mullet-y regards from heaven."
> 
> Think I made the right decision?
> 
> Anyway, thank you all so much for checking this humble project out, I hope you had as good a time reading it as I did writing it! Love you guys, this really is the best fandom ever :)
> 
> Over and out.


End file.
